Fela Anikulapo-Kuti – I am not sure why I feel so astounded that The Shrine, Fela’s club, is thriving on Broadway. Perhaps it is the transportation of this very Nigerian vibrancy from the streets of Lagos to Main Street, New York? The actors were tremendous in portraying Fela’s artistic, personal and political style.
Fela was adept at speaking through his music. He was also raucous, very controversial, and highly entertaining. The play, Fela, provides a creative education that extends well beyond the stage, into the surrounding theatre and through the often-pulsating, enthusiastic audience.
The more we are able and encouraged to peer into someone else’s world, the more open we become to a wide array of cultures, values and other systems that exist in this expansive, interconnected web of human beings. When we talk to diverse people, we have an opportunity to discover the underlying stories behind narrow newspaper headlines. We learn to appreciate that ‘true’ communication is an effective means of understanding and tolerating each other.
Even if you are not on center stage, your story has something important to add to how someone else processes the world.
Speak up …
